Katy Balls

Katy Balls

Katy Balls is The Spectator’s political editor.

Will there be a Tory/Reform pact?

19 min listen

While both Nigel Farage and Kemi Badenoch are quick to talk down speculation of a pact between the Tories and Reform, listeners may be surprised to hear that around Westminster such conversations are already taking place. With every new poll, Conservative MPs grow a little more anxious that by the time they go to the

The inside story of Labour under Starmer

23 min listen

This week saw the publication of Patrick Maguire and Gabriel Pogrund’s new book Get In: The Inside Story of Labour Under Starmer. It’s the second in their tell-all series of books on the Labour Party’s ups and downs and has caused quite a stir in Westminster. From the revelations about Keir Starmer’s voice coach causing a

Katy Balls

Katy Balls, Alexander Raubo, Damian Thompson, Daisy Dunn and Mark Mason

27 min listen

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Katy Balls analyses the threat Reform pose to the Conservatives (1:20); Alexander Raubo talks us through the MAGA social scene and the art collective Remilia (6:42); Damian Thompson reviews Vatican Spies: from the Second World War to Pope Francis, by Yvonnick Denoel (12:27); Daisy Dunns reviews the new podcast Intoxicating History from Henry

Katy Balls

From the archives: the Kay Burley Edition

20 min listen

Kay Burley announced her retirement from Sky News this week, after 36 years, having presented more than a million minutes of live television news – more than any other presenter in the world. To mark the occasion, here’s a special edition of Women With Balls – from the archives – when Kay Burley joined Katy Balls in

Kemi Badenoch makes her move on immigration

Kemi Badenoch has finally announced a policy. Ahead of the Labour government’s Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill being debated in Parliament next week, the Tory leader has unveiled her party’s latest offering on immigration. The Conservatives say immigrants should only be allowed to apply for British citizenship after 15 years of being in the

Katy Balls

Could a Tory/Reform pact be looming?

In 1603, James VI managed to do what few thought possible. The self-styled first King of Great Britain succeeded in bringing the ‘auld enemies’ of Scotland and England under one monarch. That union of the crowns is a topic of chatter and inspiration for the British right these days. Admirers of Nigel Farage now talk

Should Starmer stand up to Trump?

14 min listen

Trump has blown the Overton window wide open. In a press conference yesterday alongside Benjamin Netanyahu, the US president outlined his intention to ‘take over the Gaza Strip’, displacing 1.8 million Palestinians in the process. His plan – if you can call it that – is to build ‘the Riviera of the Middle East’. Many

Reform in ‘poll’ position

13 min listen

It’s happened. Reform are now ahead of Labour, according to a voting intention poll by YouGov. Reform leads the landmark poll with 25 points, with Labour languishing all the way down in second place on 24 points. Meanwhile, the Conservatives place third on 21 per cent, the Liberal Democrats are on 14 per cent and

Katy Balls

Reform tops a YouGov poll for the first time

There’s reason for cheer at Reform HQ this morning: Nigel Farage’s party is leading Labour in a YouGov voting intention poll for the first time. According to the poll, Reform UK leads on 25 points with Labour in second place on 24 per cent and the Conservatives in third on 21 per cent. Meanwhile, the

Trump vs Europe

15 min listen

Trump’s tariff spree continues… After making good on his election promise to opt for another round of tariffs – a 25 per cent tax on imports from Canada and Mexico and a 10 per cent levy on Chinese goods – Trump has now turned his attention to Europe. In an interview with the BBC, the president

Katy Balls

Starmer’s Brussels charm offensive is a risky business

How far will the Labour government’s European reset go? This is the question being asked in Westminster as Keir Starmer embarks on a Brussels charm offensive. On Sunday, the Prime Minister met German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, with the pair citing Donald Trump’s tariff war (launched over the weekend) as a reason why it’s a ‘good

The Tory party’s wannabe comeback kids

When a prime minister leaves No. 10, they usually discover the phone soon stops ringing. But there is at least a brief window when they are more popular with colleagues than they were in office. Why? The resignation honours list. It is a way to curry favour, settle debts and win back friends. While the

‘Props to Rachel’

12 min listen

Today was the day for Rachel Reeves, as she delivered her big growth speech in Oxfordshire. This was not this government’s first attempt to pivot towards a more business-friendly, growth-generating narrative, but it was its best effort. The headline announcement is, of course, a third runway at Heathrow, throwing her support behind the ‘badly needed’

Labour’s Richard Hermer problem

13 min listen

Richard Hermer was one of the surprise announcements from Keir Starmer’s first Cabinet, and one of the most controversial since. Starmer’s old pal came with some notable baggage: his former clients include Sri Lankan refugees to the Chagos Islands and ex-Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams, as well as British-Bangladeshi Isis bride Shamima Begum. In government,

Katy Balls

Will Labour MPs back Rachel Reeves’s growth plan?

It’s ‘growth week’ in government, as the Chancellor Rachel Reeves attempts to convince sceptical business leaders, bankers and voters that she has a plan to get the economy going. After a dismal start to the year in which bond market jitters saw the cost of government borrowing soar, Reeves is hoping to turn things around

Is Donald Trump warming to Keir Starmer?

16 min listen

Starmer and Trump have finally spoken, with a 45 minute phone call taking place between the two leaders. The pair reportedly discussed the ceasefire in Gaza, and trade and the economy, with Starmer attempting to find common ground by talking up his plans for deregulation. Cindy Yu speaks to Katy Balls and Kate Andrews about

Katy Balls

Is Donald Trump warming to Keir Starmer?

Does Keir Starmer finally have cause for optimism over Donald Trump? It did not go unnoticed that the only Labour figure to bag an invite to the President’s inauguration last week was Maurice Glasman, the architect of Blue Labour. On returning from Washington DC, the Labour peer told PoliticsHome that the team around Trump is

What Labour and the Tories can learn from Pierre Poilievre

13 min listen

For the past fortnight, Canada’s Parliament has been empty. After Justin Trudeau resigned as Liberal leader, all the polls are pointing to the likelihood that Canada will become another example of the West’s shift to the right. This is partly due to the incumbency problem (and the ongoing internal struggles in the Liberal Party), but

Do Reform want to bring back the death penalty?

10 min listen

Reform MP Rupert Lowe has called for the death penalty to be re-established in the wake of the sentencing of the Southport killer Axel Rudakubana. With the Assisted Dying Bill still making its way through Parliament, it has been decades since the topic of death has been so hotly debated by MPs.  Katy Balls speaks

Katy Balls

The Rachael Maskell Edition

37 min listen

Rachael Maskell has been the MP for York Central since 2015. With over two decades experience working in the NHS, and as a trade unionist, she has championed causes on the left from improving healthcare to combating climate change. Yet, she has not been afraid to take what she says is an ‘evidenced approach’ to